War of the Obstinates
by The Threat
Summary: Continuing on from my earlier 'Human Odyssey', this story has the Doctor face off with the one race that started the genre.
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: based on the TV-show owned by BBC, the book written by H.G. Wells and its subsequent musical version by Jeff Wayne. The story's narrator is mine.

* * *

><p>I tried to talk the Doctor out of going to Japan, but he seemed too confident about going there, as if there was no problem about it at all.<p>

"Doc, don't you know what their government does, even to their own people?" I said.

"What?" the Doctor questioned, "That they kidnap entire classes and have them fight against one another until only one survives?"

"Yes!" I answered, "Among other things."

"That's only a story you've heard." the Doctor assured me.

"Even so, they did become quite hostile towards westerners since they lost the last war." I added.

"How would you know?" the Doctor asked, "Have you been there?"

"I have, actually." I replied.

"And how did they treat you?" he asked.

"Well..." I almost refuted the point I was trying to make, by hesitating to answer, "... the people were nice..."

"Well then, what's the problem?" the Doctor asked.

"But I was there only recently." I added, "About a year ago. By then, the people were more lenient to westerners. But we're going to the late seventies..."

"Do you have a problem with Japanese people?" the Doctor asked.

If I understood the Doctor right, he was implying that I have some kind of racist problem with them. In all honesty, I did manage to make some friends when I was in Japan. It were those same friends who had given me the advice I needed that eventually got me the job that I have now. So no, I don't have a problem with them. The only reason I'd much rather avoid Japan is the same as why I'm avoiding this one town in Illinois, this woods area in New Jersey, and the country in Texas, because all of them harbor dangerous people. I should know, as I actually interacted with these people. And in case of one of them, I only survived because I promised him I would never return. I could say all of that out loud, but I couldn't be too sure if the Doctor would even let me finish talking. That was why I hesitated to say anything.

"Well, it looks like your problem is worse than I thought." the Doctor said.

He sounded as though he was talking about something else, so I asked: "Problem? What problem?"

"Trusting people." the Doctor answered.

I rolled my eyes: "So what? You'll take away the only means I have to survive?"

"Survive?" the Doctor scoffed, "The only reason your race has been able to survive as long as it has, is because people trusted each other."

"Then you have a dreamer's view of humanity that I don't share." I sighed.

"Well, we'll see." the Doctor said, as the Tardis sounded as though it were landing.

As soon as the engines stopped making their noise, the Doctor turned to leave the Tardis. Though reluctantly, I followed him.

The Doctor stepped out of the Tardis and took one quick look around: "Here we are. Your world as it was in 1978."

I just took one peek at first. We were inside some kind of building, but I had no idea what kind of building.

"Where are we?" I asked, "I mean, what is this place?"

"An observatory, by the looks of it." the Doctor said.

I opened the door to stick my head out, so I could see more. We were inside what looked like a round room, which had a large telescope in the middle. This building generally harbors scientists only, and the Doctor was one they would gladly learn more from, so I had nothing to worry about. I stepped out of the Tardis.

"So where exactly did we land, Doc?" I asked.

"I thought you didn't want to be here." the Doctor replied, "So why does it matter?"

"I'm just curious why you thought an observatory was the best place to land." I told him.

"I didn't pick this spot." the Doctor said, "All I did was tell the Tardis to go to Japan in 1978, and it randomly picked this spot."

"I see." I replied, as my eye fell on a newspaper that somebody had left on a desk in the room. I took one quick look at it, then asked the Doctor: "Are you sure we're in Japan?"

"Yes." he answered.

"Then how come can I read this newspaper?" I asked him as I showed him the paper.

He turned to me to give an answer, but since I held up the newspaper, he could see it for himself. The paper was printed in English.

"This can't be right." the Doctor said, "Not again."

"Again?" this didn't sound right.

"The Tardis does that sometimes." the Doctor explained, "Landing me in the wrong place."

"Now he tells me!" I exclaimed, more to myself than to him.

"Wait, what is that?" the Doctor pointed to something on the paper I held.

He took the paper out of my hands, then said what he just read: "This says green lights have started to appear in the skies."

"Green lights?" that sounded unusual, even after what the Doctor has already shown me.

"I'd better look into this myself." the Doctor said, upon which he turned to the telescope and, I guessed, started looking for these green lights. As he was doing so, I heard voices.

"Er... Doc? You might want to hurry it up a little." I said.

"This won't be long." he assured me.

Perhaps he was right, but those voices sounded as though they were getting closer. Whatever the Doctor was doing, he'd better do it fast, as I feared that whoever was coming, probably would have a problem with finding random strangers in the observatory.


	2. Chapter 2

"... assured me that we were in no danger." one of the voices said, "He told me there could be no living thing on that remote forbidding planet."

"Then what are you still worried about?" the other voice asked.

"Because too many of our readers are afraid of those lights." the first voice replied, "They're afraid they are missiles, on their way to bring..."

"Wait." the Doctor said, "I know one of those voices."

"And though retired, I believe you have enough influence to assure the people they're safe." the voice continued.

The second voice replied, but by that time the Doctor had reached for the door, which he opened to welcome the men we heard.

"Brigadier!" the Doctor shouted, "How nice to see you again?"

"Do I know you?" the second voice asked.

"Do you know him?" the first one asked.

"You know each other?" I asked.

"Of course you don't recognize me." the Doctor replied, "I'm the Doctor."

To this, that second voice, whom I assumed was the Brigadier, replied: "The Doctor? Well, then I believe you."

"What do you mean?" the first voice questioned, "He wasn't the astronomer I talked to."

"Hold it!" I exclaimed, as I decided to walk out that door myself to put faces on the voices, "Pause! Time out! Slow down! I don't even know what to ask first."

"Is this a friend of yours?" the Brigadier asked.

"Ah yes." the Doctor said, turning to me, "Meet Brigadier General Lethridge-Stewart."

"You vouch for him?" the other guy asked.

"And you are?" the Doctor asked.

Before the man could answer, the Brigadier answered for him: "Just some journalist, who thinks he should sooth the people."

"In august last year..." the Journalist explained, "... a huge mass of illuminous gas erupted from Mars and sped towards Earth."

"Did it now?" the Doctor questioned, "I find that a little hard to believe."

"That is what I told my readers." the Journalist said, "But some of them still remember the incident from fifteen years ago."

I was about to ask what incident, but I figured it would give away I'm not actually from this point in time myself, so I kept my mouth shut.

"Is that why you came along, Brigadier?" the Doctor asked, "To see for yourself?

"I was asked to come with him..." the Brigadier explained, "... so I could see for myself how safe we really are, and if a retired military man says we're safe, the public is at peace. But now that I found you here..."

The Doctor snickered: "You have nothing to worry about. The chances of anything coming from Mars are a million to one."

"Well, if you say so..." the Brigadier said, "... I'll shall inform the squad leader."

"Squad leader?" the Doctor questioned.

"A few U.N.I.T. soldiers have assembled at various locations, where it is predicted the green lights will crash." the Brigadier said, "Just a precaution, but it worries the public."

"Can you take me to one of these sites?" the Doctor asked, "I would very much like to investigate this."

As he spoke, I heard something outside. I wasn't sure of what it was, but it sounded like a low-flying airplane. Whatever it was, it somehow shone a greenish light, that shined through all the windows."

"Doc, you may have your wish fulfilled." I said as I ran to the nearest window.

The Doctor followed me, as did the Brigadier and the Journalist. Through the window we saw something that looked like a comet, crashing nearby.

"Brigadier..." the Doctor sounded a little more worried this time, "... take us there now."


	3. Chapter 3

The four of us left the observatory. Outside, there was just the one car, that seemed to belong to the Journalist, as he was to get behind the steering wheel. Although I have to confess that I thought it was the Brigadier's, but that's because I'm from a country where the steering wheel is on the left side of the car. But eventually, with that bit of confusion cleared up, we got in the car and drove to the crash site.

While we were driving, I heard the Journalist talking into a microphone. I still had to get used to the idea that we were in the late 1970s, where the smaller dictaphones weren't invented yet. What he said in the microphone was: "I came to the observatory to talk to the astronomer, but instead found a man who calls himself the Doctor. Brigadier General Lethridge-Stewart assured me he could be trusted. And yet, when he saw the green flare of a crashing missile, he immediately rushed to see the site. While it was the Doctor who said that nothing could come from Mars, he seems very disturbed by the event."

Correction, I thought to myself as the Journalist shut off his recording machine, the Doctor said that the chances of anything coming from Mars were a million to one. If I'm to take his words literally, he basically said there is a chance. Also, with all the other things I've seen, I'd be surprised if, of all places, there would be no life on Mars whatsoever. Also, what was all this about an incident in the 1960s? And if this Brigadier is retired, why is he getting himself involved in this? Now that I think about it, he mentioned these, if I understood him right, unit soldiers. I had a lot of questions, but since the Journalist was recording (an act that would be considered a crime in my present day), and since I couldn't let on I wasn't from this era, I had to be careful what questions to ask. I figured nobody would think twice if I wasn't completely familiar with military terminology, so I knew what to ask.

"Er... Brigadier?" I started.

"Yes?" he turned to talk to me.

"I heard you mention... unit soldiers?" I sounded like I asked a question.

The Brigadier looked at the Doctor, who then elaborated: "He's new to this. He's never heard of U.N.I.T."

The Brigadier turned back to me: "U.N.I.T. is the UNified Intelligence Task-force."

I see, I thought to myself. I thought "unit" was just a word, but it was an acronym.

"It's a military organization, assembled for events such as these." the Brigadier continued, "Sometimes with the help of the Doctor."

As he spoke, I noticed the Journalist had switched his machine back on.

"Are you saying..." the Journalist asked, "... that this Doctor is an expert on anything space-related?"

I almost made the sarcastic remark that he doesn't know the half of it. I've been traveling with the Doctor myself, and I don't even know a quarter of what he knows about space.

"No comment." the Brigadier replied.

"Doctor, can you tell me what we're to expect from this crash?" the Journalist asked him.

"Hopefully nothing." he answered.

"Hopefully?" even I knew that wasn't very reassuring;

"Do you know what Mars is to the rest of the universe?" the Doctor asked me.

I shook my head, so the Doctor explained: "It's a pit-stop planet. After a long travel through space, they'd like to land somewhere to rest and stretch their legs. Or tentacles, or any kind of limb they may have. However, some of these pit-stoppers have noticed a nearby viable planet."

"Earth." I understood that much.

"Some traveled the universe in search of a new home." the Doctor continued, "And they either decide to make Earth their new home, or they decide to remain on Mars. However, even those who, eventually found they use up too many of Mars' resources, so they decide to come to Earth as well."

Though I couldn't see the Journalist's face, some of his overall movements implied he thought the Doctor to be crazy.

"The incident from fifteen years ago, was from one such race." the Doctor continued, "They had settled on Mars, but that was to prepare their army to take over Earth. But relentless as humans are, they fought back, stole some of their ships, used it to go to Mars themselves, where they dropped nuclear bombs."

"It's for such incidents that U.N.I.T. was formed." the Brigadier added, "In case it happens again."

"Wait." I realized a little hole in the story, "If the whole planet was nuked, then how could anything be launched from it?"

"I don't know for sure." the Doctor explained, "Either the machines have always been there, ready to launch just before the nuclear attack, and just got launched by accident."

"Which can't be the case." the Journalist said, "One missile was launched at midnight. A second was launched the next day, again at midnight. And another the next day at the same hour."

"In which case..." the Doctor deduced, "... we may be dealing with survivors, who only now saw the need and the capability to come to Earth."

As he spoke, the car stopped. But by the looks of it, it wasn't because we had arrived at the crash site. Rather, there was what looked like a traffic jam, where all of the cars before us had their doors open, as if the ones inside got out for some reason. As I looked around, there were other people, all running in the same direction as we were driving.

"Looks like we'll have to walk the rest of the way." the Doctor said as he got out of the car.

The Brigadier and the Journalist followed his example, the latter of whom took the recording machine with him. The thought came to me that I could use my cell-phone to record what I was seeing, however I was afraid that I'd look more anachronistic than I already did. When that came to mind, I sighed as I left the car and followed the other three.


	4. Chapter 4

Wherever it was that we were running, there were a group of soldiers, keeping at a distance, while other soldiers were setting up a perimeter. Almost immediately, the Doctor tried to force his way through, but the soldiers stopped him.

"Sorry, restricted for civilians." one of the soldiers said.

"This is not just a civilian." the Brigadier told him, "He's the Doctor."

"One of our medical staff?" the soldier wondered.

This, the Brigadier knew, would take too long, so he asked the soldier: "Who's your commanding officer?"

The soldier was surprised, as he clearly didn't expect that question: "Why are you asking?"

"Because I want you to tell him Brigadier General Lethridge-Stewart is here." the Brigadier said.

I began wondering how many times I can hear that full title in less than a day's time, and when anyone would bother to mention his first name. As I was thinking that, the soldier spoke through his walkie-talkie (it amazed me to see people use such large machines rather than the smaller and more convenient ones in my time).

"Sergeant Benton, can you hear me?" the soldier said, "Over."

"Benton?" the Doctor sounded.

"This is Benton." a voice replied.

"I have here a... what was your name again?" the soldier forgot.

The Brigadier spoke into the walkie-talkie himself: "Benton, still with us, I see."

"Brigadier?" the voice sounded surprised, "Sergeant Benton, at your service, sir. Over."

"I've retired, you can drop the formalities." the Brigadier said, "I've got the Doctor here. Over."

"Private Horace, are you still there? Over." Benton asked.

The soldier took the walkie-talkie back: "I'm here, sir. Over."

"The Doctor is a lead expert at this. You are to give him what he needs to solve this. That's an order." Benton said.

"Understood. Over and out." he finished the conversation, "Alright, you may pass."

"Thank you." the Doctor said, after which he turned to me, "Come along."

Since I didn't know what else to do, I tagged along. As did the Journalist, even though all he did was record more on his machine, telling every move that the Doctor was making: "The Doctor rushes to the missile, which looks like a huge cylinder. But the heat of the object stopped him."

"Re-entry heat." the Doctor explained, "It'll take at least a day before it's cooled off."

"Is that good or bad?" I asked.

"Bad because we still don't know what we're dealing with." the Doctor answered, "But good, because they wouldn't come out until their vessel has cooled off first."

I couldn't be sure, but I think I heard something. It was a low whisper. At first I thought it was something that was made among the crowd, like a cat's screech that got muffled by the voices of the people. But the more I listened, the less familiar it sounded.

"Are you still recording?" I asked the Journalist.

"Of course I am." the Journalist replied.

"What is it?" the Doctor asked.

"I'm not sure, but I keep hearing something." I answered, "I just want to be sure I'm not imagining things."

"We would both be imagining things then." the Doctor said, "It doesn't sound like something anyone from Earth would say."

The Journalist seemed surprised: "You're hearing their voices? Why can't I hear anything?"

"Maybe you are." the Doctor said, "But add the noise of the surrounding crowd, and that our visitors are inside these cylinders, and you might miss it."

Since the Journalist was pre-occupied with recording everything, he wouldn't notice it if there was something off around here.

"It is also why it sounds barely recognizable." the Doctor continued, "It could be just a cricket, and we'd think it to be rotating cogwheels."

"Is there any way we can isolate the noise from everything else?" I asked.

"There might be." the Doctor said, turning to the Journalist, "Can I borrow your tape?"

It took us a while, but we finally convinced the Journalist to borrow us his tape. With it, we returned to the Tardis, where the Doctor inserted the tape (or rather the reel) into what I can only describe as a retro-futuristic (if that's even possible) computer. Upon pressing a few buttons, and a few flickering light-bulbs later, the noise was isolated. While it was still unclear, it did sound high-pitched, as if they were screams.

"Sounds like they're in a panic." I said.

"I should think so." the Doctor agreed, "Months of isolation as they were traveling through space, and finally they crash-landed."

"A bit like recovering from a very long roller-coaster ride." I understood.

"Especially if they had never known roller-coaster rides." the Doctor replied.

The Doctor continued working. What he did this time, by the sounds of it, was raising the volume, so we could understand what was being said. Assuming the sound was supposed to mean anything. After a few trials and errors, it eventually became more audible. Thanks to the Tardis' translation abilities, I understood it to mean something along the lines of "help" or other things someone would say when in a panic, but all that was summed up in one word, which sounded like "ulla", repeated over and over again. This seemed to mean something to the Doctor, as he suddenly had that distinct look of terror on his face.

"No..." he whispered, "Of all the people... they're the ones who survived."

He rushed to leave the Tardis, and I followed.

Outside, both the Brigadier and the Journalist were waiting.

"Do you have..." the Journalist started, but the Doctor wasn't listening.

"Tell U.N.I.T. to clear the area!" he told the Brigadier.

"Are our visitors dangerous?" the Brigadier asked.

"Don't waste your time asking!" the Doctor shouted, "Go do it!"

The Brigadier ran to do exactly that. The Journalist, meanwhile, took out a small notebook, in which he scribbled a few notes. Understandable, since he lost the tape which he needed to record what he was writing. I heard him mumble what he was writing: "The chances of anything coming from Mars are a million to one he said. And still, they've come."

I suddenly remembered something else.

"Wait, this is just one... thing that crashed, right?" I asked.

"Yes?" the Doctor said.

"But there were several of these launched." I remembered, "One every next night."

"A total of ten." the Journalist reminded us, "And this is merely the first."

The Doctor saw the dilemma: "So even if U.N.I.T. clears this area, they'll have to clear at least nine more soon. They can never mobilize that many men to evacuate people in time."

"Exactly what kind of danger are we talking about?" I asked.

"We need to change our strategy here." the Doctor said.

"We even had a strategy?" I questioned.

"If they were just visitors asking for sanctuary, we may have had something to bargain with." the Doctor explained, "Unfortunately that's not the case now."

"So what do you propose we do?" the Journalist asked.

"For the moment, let's get the Brigadier here." the Doctor suggested, "As well as that Sergeant Benton."


	5. Chapter 5

"We do not know their real names..." the Doctor explained to everyone, "... but they are often called, quite derogatory, Molluscs."

"And these Molluscs are...?" the Brigadier asked.

"They are beings that have evolved to a point where they can change bodies in the same way we change clothes." the Doctor answered, "All depending on their needs. They are brains, with eyes and a lip-less mouth and tentacles, and given their slug-like appearance, they earned themselves their nickname."

"And what brings them here?" Benton asked.

"Isn't that obvious?" the Journalist said, "They want revenge for what we have done to them."

I wondered why the Journalist was still here, listening to this, when the Doctor said: "Possibly. Thought I doubt that's their sole motivation."

"Then what else could it be?" the Journalist asked.

"I agree it may be revenge." the Doctor replied, "However, the fire that lights their anger could be much older. As old as 1898, when they first came here."

"What are you saying?" Benton wondered, "They've been here before?"

"Yes." the Doctor answered, "At the time, already, the had used up all that Mars had to offer them. So they had set their sights on Earth."

"Wait, if they came here before, it means we've beaten them." I realized.

"You are right. Earth had won." the Doctor said.

"So how did we beat them?" the Brigadier asked.

"You didn't." the Doctor replied.

"What do you mean? You said we won." the Brigadier couldn't understand.

"I said Earth had won, I didn't say humans had won." the Doctor elaborated, "You're not the only living things on this planet, remember? There was a virus, against which you had an immunity, but the Molluscs didn't."

"So all we have to do is find that virus?" the Brigadier asked.

"We could, but during the eighty years that we haven't heard from them, they might have prepared themselves for any such measure." the Doctor said, "And even if we could do it, it wouldn't be right."

"Why not?" Benton asked, "They're attacking us."

"Only because they're looking for a new home." the Doctor told him, "If someone enters your house unwanted, you scare him away, but you don't kill him. Do you?"

Even Benton had to realize that the Doctor had a point. That's when his walkie-talkie started crackling.

"Sergeant Benton, sir..." it sounded, "The cylinder is moving. Over."

Panicked, Benton replied: "Did you clear the area?"

"We evacuated the nearest houses, but the on-lookers wouldn't leave." the voice replied.

"What can we expect from these... Molluscs, Doctor?" the Brigadier asked.

"Hear-rays, toxic smoke, giant tripods... it would be your biggest nightmare since the Snowmen." the Doctor said, "And all from one cylinder only."

I imagined the look on my face was the same as that of the other men, as we suddenly began to fear for the other nine that were on their way.

"Is there anything we can do stop the first wave?" Benton asked.

There was a silence, as clearly even the Doctor didn't know what to do. This came completely unexpected, as he did always have an idea before. But this time he chose a less destructive one. Which was unfortunate. One idea that came to mind was to plant a bomb inside each and every one of those cylinders, using the Tardis to plant them there. But the Doctor was right to think that it wouldn't be right. And even if we did do that, it still wouldn't help against the one that's already arrived. Unless...

"How about leverage?" I asked.

"What do you mean?" the Doctor asked me.

"What if we can somehow convince these people to not attack us now?" I suggested, "Not if they don't want to see their comrades being hurt?"

"How are you planning to do that?" the Journalist asked.

The Doctor seemed to consider the idea: "I don't like the idea of hurting them. However, there may be another way to put your idea to use."

Why is it that the Doctor always ends up using some different version of my ideas?

"Can I use your recording device?" the Doctor asked the Journalist.

"Whatever for?" the Journalist asked him.

"To give a message to this first wave." was the Doctor's cryptic answer.


	6. Chapter 6

What the Doctor recorded on the machine wasn't any less cryptic than what he told the Journalist earlier. Granted, the Journalist didn't have the advantage that I had, the ability to understand extra-terrestrial languages, but that didn't help me either. I supposed that once the Doctor's plan would be put in action, it'll become clear what that message he recorded meant. But until then, the Doctor returned to the Tardis, and I followed him. Inside, he pressed all the necessary buttons, which startled me.

"Hold it!" I exclaimed, "How do you know it won't land us in the sun?"

"It never has." the Doctor replied.

"But it has landed us where we weren't headed before." I reminded him.

"Have you a better idea?" the Doctor questioned.

"I would say no..." I began, "... but since I don't know what you're planning, I have a hard time judging."

The Doctor said nothing. He did what he had to, to make the Tardis move, and after a few seconds, we arrived where we needed to be. Once the engines stopped making their noise, I decided to look outside. We had indeed landed on one of these traveling cylinders. That's when I noticed something peculiar. I noticed a green mist, but there were no engines from which it might have originated. And thinking about it, in space there's no air for fire to burn, so the engines wouldn't function even under those circumstances.

"Doc, what exactly keeps these things moving?" I asked him.

"Inertia." the Doctor replied, "They're only moving forward because they've been thrust forward. Unless some kind of force is thrust against them, they'll keep moving forward."

"I see." was all I could say.

"Watch this." the Doctor then said.

I watched indeed. I watched how the Tardis apparently lifted itself up, and a greater speed hit the cylinder, causing it to change its course. It didn't move forward anymore.

"What did you do?" I asked.

"The same thing I'll do to the other eight." the Doctor replied, "Change their course."

"Wouldn't that lead them... nowhere?" I asked, "I thought you didn't like having to hurt others?"

"Don't worry." the Doctor assured me, "Once we've come to an agreement with the Molluscs, I'll alert the proper authorities, and they'll take care of these nine."

And so he did the same with the remaining eight cylinders. They all went on a collision course to... wherever else they would end up. With this, the Doctor returned the Tardis to Earth, specifically the first cylinder's crash-site. There, we saw how a group of people were gathered around the cylinder still. I saw how military people were trying to keep them at a distance, but to no avail. And the movement of the cylinder only made the onlookers more curious, as its top appeared to be unscrewing itself off. Once it fell off, one of these Molluscs that the Doctor mentioned showed itself. It was a strange sight to behold. Even for me, who has seen living dinosaurs, other planets, and many stranger things, this was a new for me. One huge lump of meat, about as large as an elephant, bearing something that vaguely resembled a face, and needing to hold a grip with tentacles. I was so startled at the sight of that, I didn't realize it when a helicopter was flying by until it was directly within my field of vision. The helicopter bore the letters U.N.I.T., so I had an idea of whom it was carrying. My ideas got confirmed when the helicopter (apparently equipped with a megaphone) started playing that message the Doctor had recorded earlier.

"Hello there. Lovely day, isn't it?" the Doctor sounded, "But I wonder if your fellow members of your race feel the same way. Why won't you ask them? Go on, contact your friends that are on their way."

It suddenly made sense to me why the Doctor said that. Upon hearing that message, that Mollusc retreated itself. Seconds seemed like hours, so I had no idea how much time had passed until there was some movement from the cylinder. What came out wasn't that Mollusc, but something mechanical. And upon closer examination, it looked like an electronic cannon. My suspicions got confirmed when it fired a shot, and whatever it hit immediately burst into flames. People started to run away, but to no avail as this cannon (which I guessed to be one of these heat-rays that the Doctor mentioned before) kept shooting everyone and everything.

"I hate to make an understatement..." I started, "... but it seems like our plan doesn't work."

"I should have known." the Doctor said, "The Molluscs have always been an obstinate race."

"Victory at all costs." I stated.

"But there's only one thing in the universe more obstinate than them." the Doctor said.

"You?" I questioned.

"How did you know?" the Doctor seemed surprised.

In all honesty, I didn't know, I was just joking.

"Come on." the Doctor said, "Let us try something I never dared."

"Which is?" I asked.

"Improvise." the Doctor replied.


	7. Chapter 7

I wasn't sure what to expect. The Doctor's more calculated plans are usually daring, dangerous, and something to dread. But going by his own words, he doesn't dare to improvise. I wondered why. Is it because he prefers the more calculated approach, no matter how crazy? In which case does that mean he's more dangerous? Or does it mean that when he improvises, he's not doing anything very calculated, which scares him more than anything? At this point, I was more afraid of what I'd find out, rather than it actually happening.

The Doctor had activated the Tardis, and with it we traveled away.

"Where are we going this time?" I asked.

"To one of the Cylinders we got off course." the Doctor answered.

"How will that help us?" I asked him.

"If the Molluscs won't listen to threats, perhaps they'll listen to their own kind." the Doctor explained.

I had some mixed feelings about that idea: "So what? You're going to one of these Cylinders, try to talk the Molluscs out of attacking us, after bringing them off course?"

"That's the bit where I improvise." the Doctor replied.

This answered my earlier question. That I should be very afraid when he improvises.

We materialized inside one of these Cylinders. But rather than exit the Tardis immediately, the Doctor opened the doors slightly ajar, so he could still be heard when addressing the Molluscs.

"Hello, I'm the Doctor, from Gallifrey, requesting an audience." he said.

"Er... what makes you think they've ever heard of Gallifrey?" I wondered.

"I don't." the Doctor said, "However, at best they decide to listen to an outsider, who has nothing to gain or to lose with this war."

His choice of words weren't very assuring: "And at worst?"

"They'll interested to know there's another planet they can conquer." the Doctor said, "Either way, you win."

"But you lose." I remarked.

"Gallifrey can't be destroyed." the Doctor said, "Well, not by a race as primitive as the Molluscs."

"Who dares to challenge us!" a voice called.

This time the Doctor opened the door widely: "Didn't I already tell you? I'm the Doctor. I'm from Gallifrey."

"What is Gallifrey?" that same voice spoke.

Outside the Tardis, I could more of these Molluscs. While I didn't see their lips move (at least not as I understand lips to move), I was pretty sure it was the one in the middle who was talking to us.

"It's my home planet." the Doctor explained, "It's in the event horizon of a black hole that we created ourselves."

"That is impossible!" the Mollusc exclaimed.

"Are these things telepathic?" I asked the Doctor, "Coz he said exactly what I thought."

"You don't believe me?" the Doctor asked me, "After everything you've seen me do?"

"I'm not sure what an event horizon is..." I said, "But creating a black hole yourself? And living anywhere near a black hole at all? Even for you that sounds far-fetched."

"Your companion agrees with us." the Mollusc said, "You must be lying."

"Maybe I am." the Doctor neither denied or confirmed it, "But, your Cylinder must be very strongly built, for it to survive being shot out of a large cannon, and to float through space for months on in, and to crash on Earth, while remaining in one piece the whole time. And yet, I somehow manage to get in here."

"How do I know you weren't already here?" the Mollusc wondered.

"If it were here the whole time, how come you never saw it before?" the Doctor asked in return.

I was about to bring up the perception filter, but then I realized that if I did, I would only confirm their suspicions about the Tardis having always been there. So I shut up.

"You are wasting our time." the Mollusc said, then he ordered the others: "Shoot him!"

Upon hearing the order, the Doctor shut the doors. It didn't take long before we heard them fire one of their heat-rays. It hit the Tardis, but I can't say it even shook us. A few seconds after the sound stopped, the Doctor opened the doors again. I couldn't be sure, but the Molluscs seemed surprised.

"Why, that ray should have vaporized us. But it didn't." the Doctor sounded as though he was laughing at the Molluscs.

"How did you deflect our weapons?" the Mollusc asked.

"If my people can somehow create black holes and manage to sustain ourselves near it, is it not possible we have technologies that are far superior to yours?" the Doctor asked in return.

The Molluscs didn't know what to say to this.

"How about it?" the Doctor suggested, "We will take you to my planet, where you can get all the technologies you need for all your plans, and you'll call off the attacks from first Cylinder that has already arrived on Earth."

"We can't." the Mollusc said.

"The deal of a lifetime and you can't accept it?" the Doctor was surprised.

"We can accept that part." the Mollusc replied, "However, in the first Cylinder we have one of our finest leaders. Ever since our defeat the first time we sent a task-force to Earth, he has become very adamant about conquering Earth. We can accept your offer, but nothing we say will change his mind about attacking."

"Ah." the Doctor sounded as though he didn't know what else to do, which can't be good.

"Goodbye, Doctor." the Mollusc turned away from him, and the surrounding ones followed his lead.

The Doctor shut the doors again and turned to me.

"Now what do we do?" I asked.

"I'll alert the proper authorities that will take them away." the Doctor said, "This way, there'll at least be some consolation that these world-destroyers are brought to justice."

"And can't these... authorities do anything?" I asked.

"No." the Doctor said, "For political reasons, they can't do any work on Earth."

"So for political reasons, Earth will be conquered?" I asked.

"Not if we can do something about it." the Doctor said, "Remember, from where we are now, you're from the future. Is your world conquered by these Molluscs?"

I would have said no, but even the thought alone couldn't convince me that we could fight them.


	8. Chapter 8

"Wonder what's happening on Earth now." I said.

"Only one way to find out." the Doctor said.

I was afraid he'd transport us back to Earth, without knowing if the Molluscs are already attacking. Away from their crash-site, that is. But luckily, all he did was turn a few buttons on another panel of his console, until I could hear static, as though he were switching on a radio. After a while, a voice became clear through the static.

"... one of the artillerymen behind the attacks." it sounded like he was announcing something else, and within seconds we heard another voice, clearly on a battlefield: "Operation Thunderchild was a complete failure! We used all our weapons on them... these tripods of theirs are too strong to... It's like fighting a hurricane with bows and arrows."

That was when the connection broke. I'm guessing the radio-person got hit by one of these heat-rays.

"We seem to be experiencing some technical difficulties." the announcer said, "But we'll have more information on the situation soon, so stay tuned to The Voice of Humanity."

"Not even Orson Welles could conceive such a thing." I remarked.

"You'd be surprised." the Doctor said.

"What does that mean?" I wondered.

"Doesn't matter." the Doctor reminded me, "It looks like they've already started using their Tripods."

"What's this... tripod?" I asked.

"It's a giant machine that the Molluscs invented." the Doctor explained, "It was meant as mode of transport, but by now has been rebuilt into a machine of war. It walks on three legs, hence the name Tripod."

"A giant machine, eh?" I said, "I almost wish we did land in Japan."

"At this point, Japan doesn't have any giant robots yet." the Doctor told me.

I sighed as that realization came to me, but then another thought came to mind: "But... the Molluscs can't have deployed all their Tripods just yet, can they?"

"What are you saying?" the Doctor asked me.

"You heard what this artilleryman said, Earth weapons are useless against them." I reminded him, "So we have no choice but to use their own weapons against them."

"Now who's being destructive?" the Doctor questioned.

"You're probably right." I admitted, "My last idea didn't work out quite well either. So why should this one?"

"I'm afraid we have no more options left." the Doctor said, "Let us see if we can put your idea to use somehow."

The Doctor pushed a few buttons, and eventually the Tardis was on the move again.


	9. Chapter 9

We arrived somewhere, but I couldn't be sure where until the Doctor opened the Tardis' doors. When I looked, I immediately recognized the Molluscs, and the similar interior to that Cylinder we had just visited. What they were doing, I couldn't be sure, as they moved as fast as a slug. Either they had all the time in the world, or this was as fast as they could go. I was too focused on that, I didn't realize the surroundings at first, until I started looking for others. That's when I saw what they were doing. They were climbing up some kind of platform, which would allow them to crawl inside one huge machine, which was white with a green wind-shield, which somehow resembled bug-eyes. These machines had three legs, so from that I deduced this must be one of these tripods that the Doctor mentioned.

"We're in luck." the Doctor said, "They've only deployed six of their Tripods."

"How would you know?" I asked, "And how is that luck?"

"There's only room for twenty in this Cylinder." the Doctor explained, "From those empty spaces, I can assume there were supposed to be occupied by Tripods before. And at the rate they are moving, they could not have deployed too many of them yet."

"And as for the bit that makes us lucky?" I asked.

"Would you rather face twenty large machines? Or a smaller number?" the Doctor questioned.

I shrugged, as a way to say that was a good point. After this, the Doctor closed the doors again and had the Tardis move again.

Suddenly a thought came to me: "Wait, there's something I don't understand here."

"I know." the Doctor said, "That Mollusc mentioned the war from the late nineteenth century, but said nothing about humans destroying all life on Mars ten years ago. It should tell you something about them, really."

I was actually about to ask why the Tardis suddenly does drop us off at the right places, but the Doctor had piqued my curiosity: "How so?"

"With those others gone, the Molluscs were given a chance to advance their own plans." the Doctor explained, "Also, the mere fact that they survived a nuclear attack on their own planet, it sounds like they were prepared for anything. So driven they were for conquering your planet."

Soon enough, we landed. Immediately, the Doctor left the Tardis, and I followed. I had no idea where we were, as there was nothing remotely familiar about the interior.

"Fascinating." the Doctor said, "So here they insert their tentacles, and down this tube they connect themselves to the machines, and they can control their machines with the same ease as a brain controlling its own body."

"Unfortunately, we have no tentacles." I said, "So we can scratch that idea."

"Not at all." the Doctor disagreed, as he suddenly tore open the... I would guess controls, but since there was nothing familiar about them, I had no way to be sure.

"Take these cables into the Tardis." the Doctor ordered me, and I did exactly that.

Once the wires were inside the Tardis, the Doctor opened up the Tardis' console as well, and started to connect some of its cables to that of the Tripod.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"Remember how the Tardis is partly organic?" the Doctor asked me, "These machines are built to be connected to organic minds. So if I can connect the Tardis to this, I should be able to control the Tripod from here."

"That easily?" I had my doubts about that.

"It never is." the Doctor said, "However, maybe some of my sonics can force them to cooperate anyway."

I had no idea how that was supposed to work, but things stopped making sense with the Doctor a long time ago. He took his sonic screwdriver out of his pocket, pointed it at some of the cables that connected the Tardis to the Tripod, one by one. Somehow, it caused a hum from outside the Tardis, so I took this as it was working. But suddenly, sparks were flying. I looked, and saw the Doctor, holding what looked like a burned out sonic screwdriver.

"I'll have to make myself another one." the Doctor said, "But first let's see if this works."

The Doctor pressed a few buttons and pulled a few levers again. I didn't feel anything happening, so I stepped outside the Tardis to look. And as suspected, the Tripod was moving. I was about to congratulate the Doctor for his accomplishment, but then I noticed how that other Tripod that they were about to deploy earlier, had suddenly turned its attention to us.


	10. Chapter 10

"Doc!" I shouted as I ran back inside the Tardis, "They've seen us."

"Really?" the Doc seemed surprised, "Are you sure?"

I was about to say what a stupid question that was, but then there was a tremor, from which I could conclude that that I saw Tripod was attacking us.

"I am now." I replied.

The Doctor then started to look over his console, as if unsure what to do now.

"What are you doing?" I asked.

"The Tardis doesn't have any weapons." the Doctor said, "So I don't think I have the right button to control the heat-ray."

There came another tremor. I'm not entirely sure, but somehow caused me to suddenly have this one button in my field of vision, which best to my memories the Doctor never pushed.

"What about that one?" I asked.

"That won't help us." the Doctor replied, "That's the button to turn people into Scotsmen."

As I frowned in response to that, the Doctor explained: "You never know when you'll need a Scotsman."

The best explanation I had for this was that the Doctor was joking. But even so, this was the wrong time for jokes. So I replied: "Well then, it won't hurt to try."

I pressed the button. After that, I heard a sound, which sounded just like that heat-ray that was fired on the people before.

"I guess I found the right button." I said.

The Doctor turned on the screen, so he could see what was happening outside. He pressed the button again, and indeed it fired the heat-ray from the Tripod he was controlling. Suddenly, a text appeared on the screen.

"Who are you?" it read.

"Who's asking?" I wondered.

"That Tripod is." the Doctor replied, "Their machines must create a telepathic connection between them."

There was a keyboard on the Tardis console, with which the Doctor sent a reply.

"I'm the Doctor." he replied.

"What are you doing there?" was the next question, "You're not supposed to be in there."

"Er... do they know you?" I asked.

"No." the Doctor replied, "They must be mistaking me for one of their own doctors."

The Doctor typed another reply: "I'm not one of your Doctors."

There came no reply for a while.

"What are they doing?" I asked.

"They're probably trying to figure out who or what could be controlling one of their Tripods." the Doctor explained, "It can't be one of your people, and they have no reason to think other races could do it either."

"Surrender now, or die." came the reply on the screen.

"Well, we tried that." the Doctor said, right before pressing a few more buttons and making the Tardis disappear.

"Doc, we're still attached to the Tripod." I reminded him.

"I know." the Doctor replied, "So we should have no problem taking it with us."

In a weird way, that made sense to me. I was beginning to wonder whether I was losing my sanity.

We materialized somewhere just outside of London, where we met with the other Tripods. The Doctor aimed the heat-ray and shot it at one of them, upon which it immediately exploded. This caused the other Tripods to stop moving.

"They're not doing anything." I said, realizing only too late I was stating the obvious.

"They never expected one of their own to turn against them." the Doctor explained.

I came to that conclusion myself, so now I felt better knowing that the Doctor, too, liked stating the obvious.

Since the Tripod stopped moving, the Doctor didn't think it necessary to fight them. I guessed he takes the idea of defending quite literally. That one only defends when they're being attacked. And since the Tripods aren't attacking (anymore) there's nothing to defend against. As there was nothing to do, I stepped outside the Tardis. I looked through the Tripod's windshield (or whatever name the Molluscs would give it), and after some looking around, I spotted something I didn't expect to see.

"Doc, is that another Tardis?" I called for him.

The Doctor came out to see what I was talking about, and once he saw it, he smiled: "No, that's just a regular police box."

"Huh?" I didn't understand.

"Of course." the Doctor understood my confusion, "You're not British, so you wouldn't know. A police box was something they used around this time, to temporarily lock up criminals, if it's too far away from a police station and no car nearby to take them there."

I was about to ask why his Tardis, being an extra-terrestrial ship, looked like an Earth object, when I suddenly heard a heat-ray being fired. I turned to look, seeing raging fire where that police box used to be.

"What are they doing?" I asked.

"They must have talked to the others." the Doctor realized, "They know the Tardis looks like a police box, only now realize my true strength, and now they notice that there are a lot of boxes on this planet that look like my Tardis."

"So they're destroying police boxes, hoping they're destroying you?" I asked.

"My sincerest contrafibularities." the Doctor said, "Your deduction skills are remarkable."

"Your sincerest... what?" I asked.

"You don't know?" the Doctor was aghast, "It was in the very first English dictionary ever written. It surprises me nobody ever actually said it."

There came a beep from inside the Tardis, so we hurried back inside. On the screen, a new message appeared: "This is what we'll do to your people, unless you refrain from trying to stop us."

The Doctor did nothing: "Aren't you going to respond?"

"Don't have to." the Doctor said, "If they'll go about destroying police boxes, it's better than killing people. I'd say their current strategy will buy us some time."

"Time? To do what?" I asked.

"Whatever it takes to stop them." the Doctor replied.

"We already tried everything." I said, "Short from launching nuclear missiles."

"Even if we did that, it'll do more harm to your planet." the Doctor said.

"How were they defeated in 18..." I started to ask, but I couldn't remember the exact year the Doctor mentioned, "... back in the nineteenth century?"

"I already told you..." the Doctor answered, "... it was a sickness to which they had no immunity."

"And that won't work now, because...?" I wondered.

"Because by now they have probably developed a vaccine against any drug." the Doctor replied.

"What about a computer virus?" I asked, "I mean, they are connected to machines, so..."

"You really think they don't have any protection against such a thing?" the Doctor said, "Even with my advanced technology, they'd still be able to detect one coming and stop it from spreading."

I shrugged: "I suppose we can't ask them to take down their firewalls."

Suddenly, the Doctor seemed to have an epiphany: "That's it!"

I wanted to know what he meant, but I couldn't think of the right question, afraid I'd sound like an idiot.


	11. Chapter 11

The Doctor went back to his console, where he talked to the Molluscs again: "Stop attacking my people!"

I assumed he wanted the Molluscs to keep thinking they were attacking the Doctor's people, when in reality they were destroying just regular police boxes.

"We will, if you stop attacking us." was the reply.

"What if I offer you a trade?" the Doctor suggested, "All the information I have on the universe, and in exchange you leave this planet alone."

"We already know everything there is to know." was the reply.

"Do you?" the Doctor questioned, "How come could I just appear in your Cylinder, without you noticing? How could I, who's supposed to be an inferior species, get control of one of your Tripods?"

The Molluscs didn't reply. Which gave me a chance to talk to the Doctor: "Give them all your knowledge about the universe?"

"Don't worry." the Doctor assured me, "The Tardis has knowledge from the past, present and the future. Not to mention some of its personal memories it has stored. It would be too much for these Molluscs to bear. Their brains as well as their computers will suffer from information overload. They can't survive that."

"And what if they send some of that information to the others?" I asked.

"It would still be too much for them to bear." the Doctor explained, "Plus, if they send any to the ones on Mars, it's too far away. It'll take some time for it to reach. Enough time for us to intercept."

Something appeared on the screen: "Explain something to us."

It sounded serious, but the Doctor took it lightly: "Certainly."

"Why is it that when we fired on your vessel nothing happened, and yet when we fire on all the other vessels on Earth, they all incinerate instantly?"

"They're on to my plan." the Doctor whined.

"Let me try something." I said, upon which I typed a reply, "It's a new technology. We're the only ones who have it, we haven't had a chance to mass-produce it yet."

"Clever thinking." the Doctor said, "This way they'll think we're the only ones in the universe with the technology, so they'll want it even more."

"Really?" I said, "It was just the best excuse I could come up with. I didn't stop to think about..."

"It doesn't matter." the Doctor interrupted, "It works."

He pointed to the screen, where a reply had appeared: "Your proposal is acceptable."

"Good." the Doctor said, "Let's get it started."

"Doc?" I asked, "What if they decide to attack anyway?"

The Doctor laughed: "I told you, even half the information the Tardis has will kill them. When do you think they'll have a chance to attack if they're dead?"

I always manage to ask the dumbest questions imaginable.

The Doctor pressed a few buttons, which I assume would be sending the Mollusc all the information they need. On the screen, much like with any other computer that I know, a window appeared that read "sending... 0% done". Messages appeared from the Molluscs, asking for more, but after ten minutes, the window still read "0% done".

"Are you sure it's sending anything?" I asked.

"Yes." the Doctor said, and left it at that.

Once the window read "1% done", I heard a strange sound, coming from outside. I ran out of the Tardis to look. Some of the Tripods outside started to wobble, as if they had drunk drivers controlling them. It didn't take long until one of them fell down, its windshield breaking apart, the Mollusc inside it trying to get out, but fainting as it did so.

"Doc, I think it's working." I called to him.

"Let's see if it's working on the others as well." the Doctor replied back.

We traveled from this spot to the Cylinder, where we saw the same thing happening to other Molluscs. It seemed like the Doctor's plan was working, they were suffering from information overload.


	12. Chapter 12

The Voice Of Humanity, whom we had heard before, described how every Tripod seemed in trouble, had started to lose balance, and eventually just collapsed. He also spoke of many speculations people have been making. How people prayed for a miracle, and the prayers got answered (there will always be someone to exploit such things), and others who speculate that these Molluscs got sick of and died (which made me wonder whether it really was a virus that killed the first wave, back in the late nineteenth century). But if anything, he did make it clear that the Doctor's plan worked. But I wonder what would happen if people knew what really happened. If they knew that the Molluscs lost because they had too much information downloaded into their brains. They'd probably start saying that knowledge is bad, and that therefor we shouldn't investigate more into the world, or the whole universe. I disagree. The real problem here lies with wanting to know too much too soon. Even the Molluscs, who are far more advanced than we (humans) are, who are, as it were, giant brains, yet they couldn't bear all the knowledge of the universe. In a distant future, perhaps they could, but as they are, they can't.

Upon having contacted these "proper authorities" the Doctor mentioned before, all of the Molluscs have been removed. After that, we returned to say our goodbyes to the people we met.

"Pleasure to work with you again, Doctor." the Brigadier said.

"The pleasure's all mine, Brigadier." the Doctor told him.

"Hopefully we won't meet again." the Brigadier said, "At least not under these circumstances."

"I can't promise you that." the Doctor replied, "Next time you see me, I'll be a different man."

I frowned when I heard the Doctor say that, and even worse when the Brigadier didn't question those words. What does the Doctor mean when he says things like "a different face" or "a different man"? And does nobody seem to question him about it?

"Just tell me one thing." the Journalist was still there, "How did you stop these Martians?"

With the Doctor always calling them Molluscs, you'd forget they came here from Mars. But I also know that the answer to his question is too complicated to understand. At least it is if he wasn't there.

"Their own greed and arrogance." I answered the Journalist, "They pretty much brought it all onto themselves."

"I see." the Journalist replied, "Can I quote you on that? What is your name?"

If I told him his name, several years before I'm born, that would confuse too many people, so I just said: "Yes, you can quote me on that."

I turned away, heading back for the Tardis.

"Enjoy your retirement." the Doctor said.

"Goodbye, Doctor." the Brigadier replied.

**THE END**


End file.
